Review from http://www.metal-observer.com[QUOTE]Years ago, many years ago, must have been 7 or 8, I found a track of a band called VICIOUS CRUSADE on a tape compilation and I thought "Damn, that's good!" Then I lost track of the band completely until now "Forbidden Tunes" is rotating in my player and there it is again, this "Damn, that's good!" feeling!

To narrow VICIOUS CRUSADE's style down to a simple description is next to impossible, because these six folks from Belarus mix so many different styles together in a tight meshed conglomerate that I can only call great! The opening title track is a prime example for this right away. Thundering double bass, heavy, but melodic riffing, a furious atmosphere, gruff male vocals, very good female vocals, very variable, but with a great flow, damn this song has captured me already now! And singer Dmitry Basik cannot only growl, but actually also sing! "Lost Generation" is the proof this, where he offers us the rough, but still clean side of his voice, while musically we are treated with the violin for the first time in a stomping Metal song, very good, rather simple, but very catchy indeed!

"Get Stripped!" is a good bit more modern in the rhythm and has a light SISTERS OF MERCY feel to it, almost a bit poppy, but strange enough, I like it still, because it has drive and still good melodies and again the violin :) "Hurt" brings back the Metal again and their violin supported brand reminds me of someone, but who, who, who? Anyways, again we get clean duet vocals as well as solo vox, rising in intensity towards the end (the song, not the vocals), another very good one! "Requiem To Innocence" then takes out a lot of the heaviness in favour of atmosphere, with a haunting violin and a good duet performance and later on picking up in speed and heaviness.

"Messiah…Isn't It Me?" is an almost progressive song, merging together almost all the different elements of the VICIOUS CRUSADE sound, but altogether with less emphasis on the melodies, but you've got to love those violins, hehe. "Let It Burn" then is introduced by a nicely folky melody, turning into a very melodic song with dual vocals again and great melodies, great song!

"Dancing On The Ledge" brings out a more Gothic side to VICIOUS CRUSADE, but excellent mix, too, and "Vogue" is not a cover of the MADONNA song, but a genuine VICIOUS CRUSADE song, great, with some great dynamics and melodies, partly double bass driven, partly violin induced, one of the best tracks of this CD, followed by "Breath Of Life" with a very folky violin melody and also the dual vocals joining in, the whole thing comes over like a kind of Metal jig, later on even double-bass-driven, I love that song! And the closing "Stigmata" is a haunting track that closes off the CD in a great way!

So even though not everything is gold here, something about this album/band that just fascinates and grips me, just like with their countrymen of GODS TOWER they are something special and just different from the rest and that is easily worth 9 points![/QUOTE]